Phyrexian Hyrule
by Piree
Summary: Ganondorf is freed from his imprisonment by the Lord of the machines, who has begun a new invasion, this time on the land of Hyrule. Will Link and the sages be able to stop it?
1. The return of Ganondorf

Legend on the land of Hyrule speaks of an evil lord of the past: Ganondorf, ruler of the western deserts, who took control of the powerful Triforce.  
  
Through the courageous efforts of Link: the Hero of Time, and Hyrule's princess: Zelda, Ganondorf was defeated and sealed in another dimension, thus the order was restored along the kingdom.  
  
As Link and Zelda grew strong and wise, Ganondorf remained sealed, forever reminded of his defeat, growing hateful... But his hatred did not go unnoticed in this realm. Another exiled dark lord took notice of him, and bound him in an oath of loyalty in exchange for his freedom.  
  
It was a sunny afternoon in Kakariko City when the dark clouds returned. High atop Death Mountain, a narrow breach on reality opened, and the mountain roared in fear. The Goron people rushed to the peak, to find out what had happened. They found the dark figure of Ganondorf, dressed in black robes and plated armor, crackling with energy in the middle of a raging, cold, green fire. His eyes blazed as he gathered the fire around him into his hands, and hurled it at the terrified Goron as they tried to escape.  
  
His iron-cladded boot crushed the burning skull of one of the unlucky Goron, as the green fire ate through the rest. Ganondorf stopped to catch his breath, and for an instant, he felt free again. He looked down at his hand, where the Triforce of Power reverberated with golden blinding light and sparks. For this mere moment, enclosed in time, Ganondorf felt his power of old resurging, coursing through his veins, and bursting aflame in his heart.  
  
Throughout the valley, the people of Hyrule felt their spines chilling to the ominous cackle of Lord Ganondorf, which was carved on their souls for life, and now echoed in a violent crescendo of laughter and thunder. 


	2. At Hyrule Castle

Link woke up soaked on sweat, a couple drops went down his forehead. He breathed heavily, his heart racing. The nightmares were back, and he knew exactly what that meant: Once again, the fate of hyrule rested on his hands.  
  
Link wondered how much time he had before it all began... He saw Ganondorf, riding a gigantic black dragon... He saw Kakariko City burning... He saw the Kokiri Forest rotting under oily rain, its inhabitants coughing up blood, and every leaf on the forest running black with decay and death.  
  
It was much worse than he had imagined it would be. how could Ganon gain such power during his imprisonment?  
  
It didn't matter much anyway, since he already was well on his way to the queen's chamber.  
  
He barely knocked on the door when it opened. The guards had no problem with him: They already knew he was coming.  
  
-"Queen...?"  
  
-"It took you long enough... Were you getting dressed, or something?"  
  
-"I, uh... well..."  
  
Queen Zelda was leaning heavily on her desk, with a few candles lit, and was writing on a piece of paper engraved with the symbol of the royal family.  
  
-"Ganondorf... He's back." - Link uttered firmly.  
  
-"I know he's back, why do you think I'm awake?" -Zelda stopped for an instant, and turned her attention to Link.  
  
-"We've got to stop him!"  
  
Zelda fluttered her eyes at Link, who smiled and approached her slowly. Once he was near the desk, Zelda stood up quickly, and leaned toward him, looking up at his surprised stare.  
  
-"Way ahead of you." -She moved Link closer to the desk, and handed him the letter she was writing. Link began reading it, while Zelda shuffled around the papers on her desk, trying to find the royal family's seal.  
  
-"You're declaring us under full alert already? Don't you think it's a little early to do that? Some might panic."  
  
-"This is a warning, and it may save lives. It will also give us a chance to recruit anyone who is willing to fight. Give them wooden shields and spears if need be, but I won't let them be defenseless victims... Not again..."  
  
-"I agree with you, but..."  
  
-"What is it? Do you have no confidence in my good judgement?" -Zelda asked playfully.  
  
-"Oh, I have much confidence in your judgement, my queen, but may I remind you of the last time we acted on hunches and nightmares?" -They stared at each other on the dim light of the candles. Zelda reached forward and grazed his hand softly. Link swallowed slightly nervous, and a little surprised. Zelda took the letter from his hand in a swift move and turned away immediately, folding it gently over the edges. She poured the wax on the envelope and firmly pressed the royal seal on it.  
  
Link saw her determination on the matter, shrugged in defeat, and crossed his arms behind his back.  
  
Zelda reached up to his face with her hand, pulled him gently towards herself and gave him a slow kiss on the cheek.  
  
-"Please get going. I cannot entrust this to anyone else."  
  
Link took the letter and placed it safely on his belt. Then he bolted to the exit.  
  
-"Link...?".  
  
Link stopped for a second and turned back at her. -"Yes?"  
  
-"Thank you, and good luck..."  
  
-"You too..."  
  
And then he was gone. Zelda wondered if she was making the right decision, but one thing her father had told her before he died was to never dismiss her feelings or her dreams, because they were a gift of the gods...  
  
-"Funny how seven years of tyranny can change your mind, isn't it, father?" -She thought to herself.  
  
Link kept running from that minute on. Since he left Zelda's room, he was in a hurry to get everywhere. He got to his chambers, strapped on his armor, took his bow, quiver, shield, etc. but when he finally took his sword he felt something was missing from him. He looked at the back of his hand, The triforce glowing past his gauntlet. He blinked twice, and again, he was gone.  
  
Epona felt the dark winds too, and was not surprised to see Link fully equipped and ready to go in the middle of the night. Epona nodded at him as he approached. He stopped to caress her head, and brushed her mane a couple times with his hands before he saddled her.  
  
Epona was a seasoned mare, and her best years had passed, but Link and her trusted each other, and were as one when riding into the battlefield, so it was always his first choice when he had an important mission such as this.  
  
Link finished his preparations, took his rations, and finally rode out of the stable, galloping into the foggy horizon... 


	3. The day after in Kakariko City and the f...

Link kept going until he was at the foothill of Death Mountain. He looked up at the top and saw nothing but black smoke and fire, dimming the light of dawn. He tapped on epona's sides and went around the mountain, to Kakariko City.  
  
Upon arrival, Link noticed an unusual amount of activity: Wheelbarrows moved large quantities of grain, fruit, water, spices, and personal effects of the people of the city. Some were nailing shut their windows and doors. Some were crying for leaving their homes behind.  
  
-"What is happening!?" -Link asked to a grump peasant going nearby, holding heavy bags under his arms.  
  
-"We're going away, what did you think?" -The man stared at Link for a second, then kept walking.  
  
-"Why are you leaving!? The city isn't even under attack yet!" -Link caught up with him shortly.  
  
-"Listen, kid! I'm not staying to die like those Goron fools, and I'd advice you not to stay either!"  
  
-"The Gorons...?" -He asked with a stutter. The man's face went stern as he looked sadly to the ground.  
  
-"They were routed during the night. We were waiting for daybreak to leave".  
  
-"Who did it?"  
  
-"We're not sure... some say that it was a sorcerer, some say it was a demon army, some say it was a dragon. Ask everyone and each will give you a different version..."  
  
-"Can't they be stopped?"  
  
-"The Gorons can walk through magma and lift rocks the size of our homes without breaking a sweat, and they were massacred in ONE night! What do you expect US to do against them?!"  
  
-"If you're going somewhere, go to Hyrule castle, it's our best refuge against any attack, and they're readying an army as we speak."  
  
-"We figured that whoever was behind this wouldn't care for a bunch of peasants traveling south... Hyrule castle may be their primary target..."  
  
-"All the more reason to go there immediately! You can help fight them off from there. Move, and you'll be there before dusk". -Link was growing angry. Was this man a coward?  
  
-"I'm not letting THAT happen to my family!" -The man pointed at the flaming mountain. Link breathed agitated with anger, and finally climbed down Epona. The man took a couple steps back.  
  
-"I am here under orders of the queen to get you people to safety and start planning a defense against THAT! And if you're going anywhere, it's Hyrule castle! Is that clear!?"  
  
The man stuttered a little, then finally nodded in response.  
  
-"Good. Now please get moving." -Link finally sighed and climbed on top of Epona again, then let out a loud scream, which caught the attention of the people of the city:  
  
-"Those of you who are leaving the city are to go to Hyrule castle! These are the queen's orders, and she will not be happy about any of you disobeying!" Link held up the royal letter, as if it were a banner for them to follow. -"This man will lead you all there!" Link pointed to the man he'd just spoken to, who was very surprised of suddenly having the looks of the city all over him. Link finally turned to him once again: -"I'm counting on you to do this. Don't let us all down."  
  
Link rode further into the city. The people were getting scarcer as they were all on the road to Hyrule castle.  
  
Suddenly, Link noticed that he was probably the last person in the city, which actually didn't seem that bad.  
  
-"I've beaten odds worse than these" -He thought to himself. One man against an army of demons led by Ganondorf riding a huge dragon hadn't stopped him in the past, and it certainly wouldn't stop him now.  
  
Link slowed down as he went further up the mountain. As he went the road up to the Gorons' caves, fog started to cloud his way. Both him and Epona had went up this road dozens of times, so they didn't really need to see where they were going. Link was really nervous about going up alone, so he started humming a song from his childhood. Epona turned her head to toss him an uncomfortable stare. He stopped, giggling a little. Then he started whistling a song that Epona liked. Epona was visibly happier now, and they were both starting to relax a little.  
  
As they went up the mountain, a deep voice stopped them:  
  
-"You're late, as usual, brother..."  
  
Link turned around, surprised. He hadn't noticed anyone. There stood his old friend, Darunia, with his arms crossed, and his megaton hammer hanging loosely from his belt.  
  
-"Brother!" -Link jumped down epona and ran to Darunia, who put his arms around him and squeezed him a little. -"Darunia! You're killing me!" -Link gasped.  
  
-"I'm sorry, little fella, but it's been a while since we had a good brothers' hug!"  
  
-"Indeed..." -Link looked incredulously at Darunia, who had a big smirk on his face.  
  
-"What's happening?! I heard that you were all killed last night!"  
  
-"Oh? Did you really think we were that easy to wipe out?! We're the mighty Gorons, brother, you should know better than believing anything you hear from a peasant or two!"  
  
-"I guess you're right, but what DID happen?"  
  
-"Granted, we had our casualty or two... Actually, more like seventeen, but they came by the thousands, I tell ya!"  
  
-"Slow down a bit. Who are they? Were they Gerudo?"  
  
-"No, not at all... They were... Well, I'm not sure WHAT they were, but I can show you how they look like..."  
  
Darunia took Link's sword from its sheathe, and looked at it, surprised.  
  
-"What happened to the other one?"  
  
-"You know what happened... It's at the temple of time. You know I had to leave it there..."  
  
-"Right, right... The Temple of Time..."  
  
Darunia started drawing in the sand with the tip of Link's sword. As linked watched closer and closer, Darunia's drawings began to take form.  
  
Link had seen one of those in his dreams. They were some kind of shock troops.  
  
-"They charged in front of slower, more powerful ones of their kind, didn't they? I've seen them..." -Link reassured himself, and shook his head a little. -"So... Where's the rest of our brothers?"  
  
As Link stood up, Darunia tossed his sword down the cliff, with a suspicious grin on his face, as he clutched the handle of his hammer with the other hand.  
  
-"You'll join them soon enough, brother..." 


	4. Link fights Darunia on Death Mountain

Darunia swung his hammer overhead, and Link barely had time to react. He crouched quickly and tumbled backwards to put distance between him and Darunia.  
  
Darunia's powerful strike cracked the surface of the mountain as it landed. A small fissure split in front of Link, who was crouching, agitated.  
  
Darunia dashed the distance between them and tried to ram Link by thrusting with his hammer. Link pulled his shield from behind his back and deflected the hammer away, but Darunia kept going and knocked him down with his shoulder.  
  
Link stood up quickly, Darunia was once again charging at him. -"Darunia! Stop it!" -Link half-shrieked as Darunia brought down the hammer on him. Link stopped it bluntly with his shield, sliding back couple steps due to the force of the blow.  
  
-"I'm sorry it has to be like this, brother... I really am..." -Darunia said sadly as he approached him. Link's arms were sore: It had been a while since he had faced such a powerful opponent.  
  
-"It has to be like what?! Why are you attacking me?!" -Link clutched his shield tightly, and brought down his hand to his boomerang.  
  
Darunia charged at him. As Link braced himself, Darunia slowed down and flung his hammer upwards, throwing Link back and his shield flying through the air.  
  
Link threw his boomerang. It grazed Darunia's shoulder as it passed by. Darunia grunted suddenly when it came around and hit him in the elbow, stiffening his limb. Darunia held the wounded arm at his side, still clutching the hammer with the other hand. He walked towards Link, who struggled to stand up and ready his bow and arrow at the same time.  
  
Link had little time to take aim, since Darunia was once again charging at him at full speed. Link rolled sideways as Darunia passed him by, raising a dense cloud of dust behind his trot. Link fired his arrow on Darunia's side. A faint trail of blood went down Darunia's wound. He growled in pain as he pulled the arrow out from between his ribs.  
  
Link readied another arrow, hoping it would not come to use. Darunia turned around to face him, his eyes were bloodshot and his wounded arm trembled as it recovered its feeling.  
  
Link had rolled closer to the cliff his sword had been tossed down through. He looked down in the blink of an eye and saw the sword lodged between two rocks on the side of the cliff, too far for him to reach.  
  
-"Stop, Darunia! Why are you doing this?!" -Darunia stared blankly at him, and frowned.  
  
-"You... Must... Die..."  
  
Link squinted his eyes, taking aim, trying to figure out a way to immobilize Darunia. Darunia's veins swelled with a black tinge. Link figured he'd be able to blind him with a light arrow, and he began imbuing it with magic. The bronze tip of the arrow glittered with a golden shine, and a bright halo surrounded it. Link's shadow extended far behind him.  
  
Darunia froze for a second as he felt the arrow's power. He flinched before attacking again and raised his hammer, ready to swing it sideways at Link.  
  
Link fired his light arrow, hitting Darunia in the shoulder. The arrow made Darunia lose his grip on the hammer, which fell heavily on the ground. Darunia was blinded by the arrow's flash, and he started twitching in agony as he stumbled to his knees, spitting a black, tarry substance.  
  
Black smoke emanated from the wound in his shoulder as the power of the light consumed the arrow. Darunia's veins lost their black tinge as more thick liquid got expunged out of his body through his nose and mouth. Link stood there, horrified. Darunia finally looked up again at him. Something about him was different. The black substance that had pooled at Darunia's shadow bubbled and evaporated quickly. Darunia fell on his chest as he sighed on relief and went unconscious.  
  
Link did not fully understand what had just happened, or why he was attacking him, but he was convinced that it hadn't been Darunia's will to do so.  
  
Link and Epona managed to drag Darunia close to a boulder. Link used his hookshot to chain Darunia to the boulder, to come and release him after retrieving his shield and sword, and finding the rest of the Gorons, as well as whatever dark force had forced Darunia to attack him.  
  
Link retrieved his shield, but his sword was impossibly high for him to reach it, so he picked up Darunia's megaton hammer and moved up the mountain... 


	5. The Dark Lords' army

The air on Death Mountain was different, thinner than usual, and it carried with it a foul stench, of charred bones and molten metal.  
  
Link carried with him Darunia's Megaton Hammer as a weapon, which made him a little uneasy, since he was much better with his sword. It wasn't the only reason Link was feeling upset. He had just fought Darunia, and apparently rid him of some foul mind-control spell, but it was still his friend, his brother, who had tried to kill him earlier.  
  
Link cleared his head of these thoughts as he approached a large column of black smoke that rose from above the mountaintop. Volcanic ashes were falling all around Link, and he could barely see what was in front of him. Epona was nervous. Not because of her age, not because of the danger ahead, but because Link was nervous as well. He'd never been one to be scared of a little volcano ash.  
  
-"Perhaps you should go back, girl." -Link said as he dismounted and covered his nose and mouth with his hat. -"It's okay, nothing's going to happen to me, but I'll really be moving a lot faster on my own. Besides, you should be looking after Darunia.".  
  
Epona shook her head. Link embraced her neck and smiled under his hat. -"Go, Epona. I'll be fine."  
  
Epona stared at him sadly as he moved on without looking back. He was right, though. The terrain was too rough for her to keep climbing, but it was still sad to let him go alone in the middle of a quest.  
  
Link climbed with his weapons sheathed as the trail grew cumbersome. The volcanic ashes were starting to impair his vision, but he wasn't going to wait any longer to get to the bottom of this.  
  
Link found himself on the entrance of a cave that went directly into the core of the volcano, and he entered without hesitation.  
  
Link was horrified by what he saw inside the volcano: An army of dark metal monsters, building a foundry with the fires of the volcano. Gorons were helping these monsters build: lifting heavy boulders, walking through the magma to build them bridges, and greeting them as their masters. In the middle of the volcano stood atop a rock a gigantic black dragon, its scales strangely symmetrical, and its wings, arms and legs jointed by cranks, cogs and levers, instead of bone and muscle. Its eyes were blood red and bright like fire.  
  
Vents on the dragon's head and back expelled boiling hot steam as it curled its long neck around itself to look around. Link was startled when the dragon faced his way, but it didn't seem to notice the young Hylian.  
  
The Gorons helping the monsters were adorned by strange markings on their arms and forehead, and their spines had large jet-black spikes jutting out from each vertebra. Their mouths were oddly gagged with some sort of metallic muzzle, with a couple spikes on the sides, like the jaws of an ant. Link wondered if the Gorons had been enslaved and such devices were meant to keep them in line, but they didn't seem hampered by such artifacts, quite the opposite. They seemed stronger, unafraid, and worked twice as hard as he'd seen them work in their entire lives.  
  
The Gorons were the least of his worries. Even the gigantic dragon didn't seem so bad compared to the thousands of strange soldiers that crowded the volcano: Some were as small as a cucco, but had many insect-like legs, and a long spiked tail. Some were the size of men, had six eyes around their heads, but no mouths, or ears, or noses, or hair, or flesh. Spikes of seemingly erratic stone jutted from their backs, and they held bizzarre shields and even stranger blades on their clawed hands. The blades on their weapons dripping an oily, brown liquid.  
  
The larger ones were as tall as a house, and had multiple arms and legs, attached to a torso that spun independently of the head, that had several gaping maws.  
  
Link wondered where he could start fixing things, but there were literally thousands of monsters within the volcano, and they seemed to be building more of them, hammering molten iron and pouring it into strange coffin-like crates.  
  
In the midst of these metallic monsters, Link noticed a familiar being: Ganondorf.  
  
He had grown long hair and a small beard, he was wearing a heavy full- plated armor made of dark iron, and black torn robes draped around him. The Gem on Ganondorf's forehead had been replaced by an obsidian pike, attached to a small, mainly decorative horned helmet he was wearing.  
  
Link was surprised to see him in the middle of the army. He wasn't usually very happy having to deal with his servants, and would rather be in an impossibly tall tower, guarded by his many abominations.  
  
It didn't matter. Link was impossibly outnumbered there. Perhaps Zelda was right, perhaps war was upon them inevitably. But Hyrule castle wouldn't resist a siege from this kind of army. The people of Hyrule had embraced peace, and even if they managed to get every single territory to fight against these monsters, the odds were against them.  
  
Link's mind stopped drifting with a strange, oncoming buzz. He looked down the crater to see where it was coming from. Millions of insectlike tiny creatures were flying all about the volcano, leaving through any crevice they could find. Suddenly, they were all around Link, too, and some started clinging to his clothes, biting through them to his skin. His screams were drowned by the buzzing crescendo that had enveloped the entrails of the mountain, but these insects were showing no mercy on him.  
  
Link deflected some of the incoming insects with his shield, and frantically started swinging at them with the Megaton Hammer, but there were too many of them. He concluded he'd have to protect himself by other means, and he started summoning to himself one of the very few magical spells he had learned.  
  
Din's Fire erupted from within him and circled around him as the metallic insects' wings burned down and rendered them unable to fly. The large fireball he had become was spotted all around the volcano, and angry machines shrieked battlecries as they charged at him, even incomplete, lacking arms, or legs.  
  
As soon as the fire around Link was extinguished, more and more of the battleflies started swarming around him. When there were enough of them, Link casted the fire once again, leaving an authentic fly carpet in his way.  
  
As he stopped to cast the fire, the larger, seemingly more vicious machines started gaining distance on him.  
  
Half a dozen of the human-sized monsters surrounded him, the battleflies had desisted for an instant, so Link could finally see what was ahead of him. As the monsters charged at him, Link swung the hammer sideways, splitting one of his attackers in half. Then he brought the hammer above his head, and started smashing the remaining ones with decided strikes. The last one to arrive caught Link off his guard and drove the tip of its poorly sawed sword into Link's side, who roared in pain and smashed off the monster's head with an angry blow. More were coming, and he knew he wouldn't be able to hold them off.  
  
Ganondorf hovered above the monster horde and flew swiftly towards Link, who was right in the mouth of the cave, still swarming with battleflies.  
  
The rest of the machines charged uphill at him as he was slowing down.  
  
Link felt his few pieces of armor getting heavy, his eyes were blurring, and he felt his mouth getting drier. He looked down at his wound and it seemed like it was already festering.  
  
He finally made it out of the cave and tripped at the entrance. His sight turning black, and he felt his muscles giving up. He looked up at the path ahead of him, and he saw blurry figures climbing up toward him. "They look awfully familiar", he thought, as he finally fainted... 


	6. Escape from Ganon's grasp

Link could hear metal pounding on stone as the mechanical soldiers approached him. He'd barely remained conscious for a few seconds when he saw those familiar figures climbing up the road.  
  
The machines approached him, and two of them lifted Link off the ground, a third raised its blade high, preparing to strike a final blow on Link. The Triforce started shining blindingly and Link opened his eyes again. The soldiers that were holding him stepped back from the glow and let go of him. Between the troops hovered Ganondorf, approaching Link, who was struggling to get himself to his feet, landing exhausted on his knees.  
  
-"Finally kneeling to me, elf?" -Said Ganondorf's deep voice. -"It's not as I had intended it to happen, but I suppose that I might as well take the Triforce from you now, rather than later." Link gasped as Ganondorf lifted him by his arm, the triforce on both their hands shining with flickering, golden light. Link reached out with his free hand and grasped Ganondorf's throat. -"Fool. As always, you don't know when you've been defeated." -"How would you know? You've never been able to defeat him. Though not due to lack of trying." -Interrupted a familiar voice. -"Princess Zelda? I cannot believe it. Both of the missing triforce triangles have come to me in the same day..." -"It's Queen Zelda now, Ganondorf, and don't think for a second that you'll get the Triforce." -"You talk too much!!!" -Interrupted Darunia's angry shout. he was swinging a boulder tied to the hookshot chain with his good arm, and tossed it at the army behind Ganondorf. Half a dozen mechanical soldiers were crushed under the boulder, a dozen more were crippled by it. Darunia pulled it back to himself and flung it once again at the army. Zelda put her hands together in a quick motion and casted an immense fireball, which circled around Ganondorf, mechanical soldiers bursting into flames all around.  
  
-"So, they're flammable..." -Zelda smirked. Ganondorf started focusing on the Triforce. Link's will kept it attached to his hand, but he was about to lose consciousness. The thought of Zelda and Darunia fighting his fight encouraged him, and he felt some of his strength returning to him. He reached back with his free hand and grabbed one of his arrows, and in a quick, unexpected move, stabbed Ganondorf in the neck with it. Ganondorf let go of Link's arm as both stumbled to the ground. Link could barely move, but he tried to crawl towards Zelda, who was readying another fireball to toss at the now incoming soldiers.  
  
Ganondorf broke the arrow jammed in his neck and stood up steadily. He unsheathed his sword and walked toward Darunia, who saw him coming and reacted accordingly, throwing the boulder at him. Ganondorf struck the boulder with his mighty sword and crushed it to pieces, in the same manner only a powerful explosion could. Darunia stood amazed, and stepped forward, ready to charge. He noticed Link trying to crawl to safety as Zelda hurled fireballs at the endless monsters that kept surging from the cave.  
  
-"We meet again, Goron chieftain... I remember you were my thrall last time we met..." -"I've been released of your spells once and for all, you bastard, and I'll make sure you pay for what you've done to my people and my friends!"  
  
Ganondorf held his sword high, taunting. Darunia dashed to Link and tossed him on top of Epona as he took back the hammer. Then charged at Ganondorf with all his might.  
  
Zelda cried out to him, but Darunia's rage could not be stopped by any royal command. Darunia's hammer clashed with Ganondorf's sword, and sparks flew high and far as they made the ground tremble with the force of their blows. They parried each other's attack deftly, and small surges of energy crackled between their weapons.  
  
-"I didn't know you had such strength, Goron. If only your kind had been so fierce, maybe I would've turned them into warriors, rather than slaves." Darunia roared at Ganondorf's words as he charged at him.  
  
Zelda climbed atop Epona and cast one more fireball at the incoming soldiers, burning whatever tissue still held them together. Darunia's battle cry had been drowned by the noise of the bursting soldiers. Ganondorf left himself open for the attack. When Darunia charged at him with the hammer, Ganondorf grabbed it by the tip and twisted it out of Darunia's grasp while thrusting with his sword, Darunia stepped back, now unarmed.  
  
Ganondorf laughed out loud as Darunia stared at his hammer in the enemy's hands. Zelda cried out to Darunia once again, who refused to remove his angry glare from the cackling Ganondorf.  
  
Ganondorf tossed Darunia's hammer at its owner's feet. He was enjoying Darunia's rage.  
  
-"Darunia! Forget about him, we must go!" -Zelda had finally gotten through to him. Darunia turned away and followed Epona as she raced downhill, jumping rocks and small cliffs to take shortcuts. At one point, Zelda helped Epona make a magic leap across a wide precipice. Darunia had curled into a ball and rolled down the mountain behind Epona.  
  
Ganondorf gritted his teeth as he saw them getting away down the mountain. The battleflies were still swarming around erratically, and the rest of the machine soldiers returned to their positions. Although some tried to follow Epona across the cliff and fell to their destruction.  
  
-"We'll meet again, Queen Zelda..." 


	7. Songs by the river

"I'm so sorry, Link, I really am..." Zelda tried to keep him awake. Sweat trickled down his face as Zelda attempted overall healing magic on him. "I should've never sent you alone up that mountain, Link. I'm so sorry..."  
  
They had been riding all afternoon, and dusk was near. Zelda wanted to get to the castle as fast as possible to heal Link properly, but it was uncertain if he would make it through the night if he wasn't treated soon.  
  
They stopped by the river so Epona could rest. Having fresh water at hand, Darunia carried Link close to the river, placing him on the ground. Zelda rolled him over his side to have a closer look at the wound. She gasped in horror as she saw it: His wound had been infected in a matter of minutes, and it was no regular infection. Link's wound had turned totally black, and the infection had passed to his bloodstream, revealing faint black lines on his veins.  
  
"For the goddesses! What did this?" Link barely opened his eyes a little. "That bad, huh?" He whispered with little worry on his voice. "Whatever it is, I'm sure you can heal it. Kiss my booboo?" Zelda laughed to hide a little tear. "No offense, but your booboo looks kind of disgusting..." They laughed together. Link's wound hurt him much more when he laughed, but it didn't matter. It was relaxing Zelda, and that was enough for him. "I did get this little bruise on my lip, too..." Link smiled at her. Zelda leaned over him, their eyes very close. She stroked his lip with the back of her finger. "That one will heal all by itself..." She said as she leaned away and began focusing her magic. "This one, on the other hand, needs help, and it needs it fast." "I agree." Link gasped and shut his eyes as Zelda started waving her hands over the wound. Fine dust that appeared to be made of light fell from between Zelda's fingers into the festering wound. "I think this is going to leave a scar..." "It already has. Not that you could see it..." "What do you mean?" The wound flinched as black blood gushed out. Link gasped again. "I'd never lost to him, Zelda... Not by this much... I'd be dead now, if you hadn't shown up..." "Probably. Good thing I did show up, huh?" "Why did you come? You should be in your castle, away from the danger..." "And read the news of your passing in my soft, comfy bed, right?" "You know what I mean..." More tainted blood poured out from Link's side. "I know what you mean, but I don't agree. This isn't your fight. It's not about you and Ganondorf. It's about Hyrule against those invading monsters." Link's wound looked more like a normal wound, now that all the poison had been extracted. The grass Link was lying on died instantly, as did every weed that was growing there. The land soaked it up so quickly that it didn't get to the river. Zelda wondered if that little poison would've been enough to taint the whole river. It seemed that powerful.  
  
Link sighed in relief. he could feel how the poison was out of him. Zelda took a small bottle from a pouch on Epona's saddle. The bottle was filled with blue potion. she bit the cork off and knelt beside Link again, holding his head up. "Were you planning on keeping this unused forever?" Zelda mumbled at him as she tilted the bottle for Link to drink the potion. He held her hand and drank half of it, then took the cork off of Zelda's mouth and put it on the bottle again. "That'll do it."  
  
"I could kiss that booboo now..." "You mean now that it isn't rotting and squirming?" "No. That one still creeps me out, but the other one has become much more appealing..." Zelda leaned over him as she close her eyes. For a mere instant, their lips brushed together, and Zelda felt Link's cold sweat trickle down her chin. Their lips barely brushed, as Link was falling unconscious, finally leaning his head on Zelda's chest. She stroked his chin and put her arms around him. Link fell asleep.  
  
Darunia had been sitting on the grass, far from the others. He'd been thinking of his people. Of his defeat... Ganondorf's laughter as he took away Darunia's hammer was imprinted on him, and it wouldn't stop repeating itself until he had his revenge.  
  
The sun had gone down, and they'd stay by the river until dawn, when it would be safer to travel. Zelda made a fire without need for wood, and Darunia finally moved closer to them. Link had been sleeping rather peacefully for a while, now, Zelda was still holding him close. Darunia sat by the fire. He whispered to Zelda that he'd stand guard, and that she should get some sleep. Zelda blinked and nodded a little, closing her eyes slowly, and falling asleep in no time at all.  
  
Darunia sighed and stared blankly into the fire, thinking of his lost brothers, and how he'd rather have died as one of them, but first he had to have his revenge.  
  
The night went by, the river's flow was soothing. Darunia had been staring so hard into the fire and thinking so hard of his family that he did not see the figure approach. Still, he was not startled when he heard its voice. "Some guard you are..." "You really don't want to touch that subject, Princess..." It was Princess Ruto of the Zora. She'd swum upstream the river and surfaced by the bonfire. "I'm sorry. About everything..." "Sure..." Darunia growled. "Well, I am... I may not particularly like your people, but I've never meant them any harm, and I've always at least respected them..." "Like that time you called us a bunch of stone-gulping, wall-carving simpletons? "I meant that in the best possible way... And you left out "illiterate"." "I suppose we are... We were..." "Oh, don't talk like that. There's still enough of you to pester us with your songs and your fire dances and your flower bombs..." Ruto put her hand on Darunia's shoulder. "How about one of those songs right now?" Darunia smiled faintly. He looked at Ruto and took a deep breath. "I am a little rusty, y'know?" "Sing away, pal, I'm no critic."  
  
Darunia cleared his throat and took another deep breath, then began singing one of his favorite Goron folk songs. His deep voice was soothing, and the tapping of his fingers on his legs gave it a good rythm. The song was only a couple sentences long, but it repeated after itself, with a short, humming interlude between each encore. Darunia's singing awoke both Zelda and Link. They did not seem surprised by Ruto's presence at all. Link had heard that song before, he'd even memorized it. He joined Darunia in his humming at one of the interludes. By then, Ruto had learned the lyrics and was adding a sharp voice to the song, as well as a sweet whistle only a Zora's gills could produce. Zelda started humming as well, although a little off key at first.  
  
A few minutes later, the four of them were singing and laughing. Link was still very weak, so he was leaning over Zelda as they sang. Darunia grabbed Ruto by the wrist and her waist and started dancing with her. She wasn't much of a dancer, but she managed to keep up with Darunia without getting her feet crushed. Darunia managed to forget about his fallen comrades briefly. It felt good to leave some of his torment behind. Once he had cheered up a little, the four of them started teaching each other songs from their native lands. Ruto's song consisted of a difficult series of consecutive whistles and impossible series of sea-creature sounds. The others kept up as well as they could. Of course it sounded awful, but they were having fun, and more importantly, they forgot at least for a few minutes that there was a war waging.  
  
They'd sing and dance for hours, and when they were finally exhausted, they'd finally go back to sleep for a few hours until sunrise.  
  
Though Ganondorf was at the top of Death mountain, they felt deep down that he would hear their songs, their voices undefeated, and know that they did not fear him. 


	8. Gathering of Sages

Link woke up. He felt better, but he was still very weak. As he regained consciousness, he felt Zelda's warm embrace around him. It was soothing. He heard the voices of Ruto and Darunia in the background, with birds singing and the river flowing peacefully.  
  
A thunder roared high above Death Mountain.  
  
None of them even bothered to turn, for they knew the horrible sight that expected their gaze.  
  
Instead, Link turned to Zelda's face, that smiled down upon him, lit by the sun's first rays.  
  
"Good morning. You might have noticed our friends are back to their usual selves."  
  
"I have. I feel all numb. Help me up?"  
  
"Of course"  
  
Zelda helped him up. Her legs had fallen asleep, and she was sure that if she peeked under her dress, she could see Link's face imprinted on her chest, right where he'd slept. It didn't bother her that much, under the circumstances, she figured she owed him one -at least one more-.  
  
"Silence, you two!", Link's voice imposed over the others' quarreling.  
  
"Good mornin', brother!" Darunia had honestly forgotten what he was arguing about.  
  
"I take it you had a good half-night's sleep" Ruto intended to make a sarcastic remark on Link's "accomodation" for the night. She'd always been jealous of Zelda's apparent privileges.  
  
Link shrugged, gave a quick glance at his wound, then started readying himself for travel.  
  
"Time to get moving." Zelda turned for a second to Ruto and Darunia. She noticed that might have been precisely the reason they were arguing in the first place.  
  
After a couple minutes, Ruto approached Link, speaking in a voice just above a whisper: "I can get to Zora's realm much earlier If I swim upstream. I may be able to rally my people." She was particularly reluctant of speaking of her kingdom in front of Darunia.  
  
"I advice you come with us to the castle, we can have a herald in your land in no time, and we can start discussing our course of action while we wait for reply."  
  
Ruto shrugged. She didn't particularly liked Link's attitude at the moment. Maybe it was the situation she didn't like one bit.  
  
She nodded nevertheless and walked the long road to Hyrule castle with them.  
  
Link expected all the other sages to arrive eventually to discuss the matters in a gathering. Nabooru had neglected her duty as Gerudo chieftain for years due to her spiritual obligations that tied her to the temple beyond the desert. He at least expected her second in command to arrive before nightfall.  
  
Saria was willingly secluded in the forest, aware of the possible annihilation, striving to spend her final moments surrounded by what she loved. Most of it, anyway...  
  
Rauru was never anywhere to be found, but he was never late either, whenever matters were urgent, that is.  
  
Impa, of course, quite possibly remained guarding the Shadow temple, for it would be surely the next one to be attacked.  
  
None of them liked having the people of Hyrule fight the Sages' battles. Link was particularly angry at the situation. It had always been his duty to keep Ganondorf at bay. He'd much rather have himself fight an army than lead another one to their deaths.  
  
However, he realized this was a battle that the kingdom's heroes could not fight alone.  
  
Zelda made sure Link rested properly, as she made sure she exhausted her healing resources on him to make sure that nasty poison was out of his system for good.  
  
Death Mountain growled through the day, bad omen for the superstitious peasants in Hyrule City.  
  
Finally, word came from the gate guards up to Link's resting chambers in the highest tower. 'Riders from the south-west' he overheard the messenger speaking with Zelda.  
  
He hurried to greet them, though Zelda was not particularly thrilled.  
  
Nabooru was older than Link, yet her body remained nearly the same. Link used to joke with her about 'drinking from the Kokiri fountain'. In reality, besides of the fact that she was a sage, her people had the tendency to age in the most graceful manner in Hyrule, maybe even more so than the mysterious Sheikah. It was not mere sorcery what had kept those twin sorceresses alive for four centuries.  
  
Link and Nabooru embraced profusely at the castle's gate. He made sure to welcome her half a dozen times. The Gerudo second in command indeed came with her. Link had to behave stoic and courtly once again, once he remembered the situation.  
  
Zelda greeted both spokeswomen as politely as she could, careful not to hint to either of them that she wasn't as delighted to have them there as she claimed. Nabooru and her escort were thrilled to be there, however.  
  
"It has been a long time, kid" She spoke to the young hylian, who didn't really appreciate the term 'kid' on him any more, not even on a friendly tease.  
  
"Indeed is has, old friend" Link made sure to emphasize the word 'old' ambiguously. They both laughed as they embraced once more and shook hands ceremoniously.  
  
"Please come join us in the dining hall, we can start discussing matters." Zelda interrupted intentionally to move things along quickly.  
  
At the table awaited Ruto and Darunia. They had been arguing until they heard the great hall's doors swinging open, then they smiled innocently.  
  
"Finally they arrive'." Darunia grumbled under the noise of his chair's creaking as he stood.  
  
Nabooru bowed in apology, and assigned herself a seat right next to where she knew Link would sit.  
  
She smiled at Zelda's discomfort when she leaned even closer to him. In the past, neither woman had had the resolve to snatch him for themselves once and for all when they had a chance.  
  
Link was, as usual, oblivious to most such matters, a quality in him Zelda did not particularly like. Nabooru was convinced he could not possibly be as naive as he appeared, though.  
  
"We shall begin." Zelda imposed as the queen she was.  
  
For the next hours, they'd debate on the enemy's origin, motives, and more importantly, how to defeat them. Halfway along the meeting, Rauru finally arrived, apologizing endlessly, then caught up quickly, and swiftly got his point across the table to everyone else: "It is the job of us Sages, not the people of Hyrule, to protect the realm from any enemies, for we are the ones imbued with the spiritual power to do just that."  
  
Rauru was eldest and most wise among them, and so they remained silent for a short while. It was finally agreed that the Hero of Time would be insufficient to defeat the forces of Ganondorf this time, but with the active aid of the Sages, victory would be in range. After all, what was the point of saving the land of Hyrule if all of its people were dead?  
  
Zelda frowned upon the decision, though she forced herself to agree out of common sense. The Sages were powerful beings, and resourceful ones, too. They would find a way to defeat the new threat.  
  
Later, all six of them had agreed on gathering the rest of the Sages as soon as possible.  
  
It was not the first time, nor the last one, that they'd been forced to move restlessly. Last night's nap had been the last good sleep Link would have in a week.  
  
And so, they began to move instantly. They set out for Kakariko, in hopes of talking Impa out of her temple. They knew Kakariko had little time left until it was festering with the spoils of the invading army, and Impa would fight -and die fighting- against their armies if she had the chance.  
  
Thus, Link, Zelda, Rauru, Darunia, Ruto and Nabooru began the ride to Kakariko the same night... 


End file.
